Microsoft Purview: The Essential Tool for Modern Data Governance Strategies

Microsoft Purview is a powerful data governance solution that helps organizations discover, catalog, and monitor data across on-premises and multi-cloud environments. With automated data discovery, sensitive data classification, and lineage tracking, it enhances compliance and transparency. Microsoft Purview enables enterprises to streamline data management, mitigate risks, and unlock valuable insights, making it essential for modern data governance strategies.

What is Microsoft Purview

Microsoft Purview is an integrated data governance solution designed to help organizations manage, discover, and share their data across diverse environments, including on-premises systems, cloud platforms, and Software as a Service (SaaS) applications. By offering a unified governance portal, Microsoft Purview empowers both data producers and consumers to collaborate effectively, ensuring that data is easily accessible and appropriately managed.

Data Sources

Microsoft Purview supports a wide range of data sources, including:

• On-Premises: Traditional databases and data warehouses located within an organization’s infrastructure.
• Cloud: Data stored in cloud environments, such as Azure Data Lake Storage, ensuring scalability and flexibility.
• SaaS Applications: Data from applications like Salesforce or Microsoft 365, allowing organizations to manage and govern data from various third-party services.

Governance Portal and Data Catalog

At the core of Microsoft Purview is its governance portal, which serves as the central hub for data management. Within this portal, data producers (those who create or manage data) and consumers (those who utilize data) can interact seamlessly.

Data Catalog

This feature allows users to discover, understand, and leverage data assets across the organization. It provides metadata, lineage, and classification, enabling users to find the right data quickly and efficiently.

Fig: Microsoft Purview Architecture

Data Sharing and Collaboration

Microsoft Purview enhances collaboration between data producers and consumers by facilitating secure data sharing. Organizations can establish data sharing agreements that define how data can be accessed and used, promoting responsible data governance.

Fig: Microsoft Purview Architecture

Data Officers and Insights

Data officers play a critical role in overseeing the data governance framework. They utilize Microsoft Purview to gain valuable insights into the organization’s data estate.

• Data Estate Insights: This feature offers a comprehensive overview of data assets, helping data officers understand the data landscape, identify potential risks, and ensure compliance with data policies.

Data Policies

Microsoft Purview also enables the establishment of data policies, which govern how data is managed and protected across the organization. These policies help maintain data quality, security, and compliance with regulatory requirements.

Data Map

A vital aspect of Microsoft Purview is the Data Map, which provides a visual representation of the organization’s data landscape. The Data Map outlines how data flows between various sources and applications, offering insights into data relationships and lineage. This visualization aids in understanding data provenance, enabling organizations to trace data back to its origin and ensure its integrity.

How Microsoft Purview works

Microsoft Purview provides a streamlined approach to managing data governance within an organization. By registering data sources, scanning for sensitive information, classifying data, and visualizing relationships through a Data Map, Purview enables effective data management and compliance. Here’s a step-by-step guide to the process:

Here’s a step-by-step description of the process in Microsoft Purview:

Register Data Sources: Begin by adding data sources, including on-premises, cloud, and SaaS applications, into the Microsoft Purview Data Map. This setup allows Purview to identify and manage assets within the selected environments. Some of the data sources include Azure SQL Database, Azure Data Lake Storage Gen1 and Gen2, Azure Cosmos DB, Azure Blob Storage, Azure Synapse Analytics

Fig: Screenshot for registering data sources in Microsoft Purview

Configure Scans: Set up automated or scheduled scans for each data source. These scans assess the contents, capturing metadata and discovering sensitive information across data assets.

Fig: Screenshot for registering data sources in Microsoft Purview

Classify Data: As the scan completes, data is automatically classified based on predefined or custom classifications. This process tags sensitive data elements, such as personal or financial information, making it easier to apply security and governance policies.

Fig: Screenshot for registering data classification in Microsoft Purview

View Data Map: Access the Data Map to visually explore the relationships and lineage of data assets across the organization. This visualization provides insights into data flow, origin, and connections between various systems.

Fig: Screenshot for data map in Microsoft Purview

Manage and Monitor: Use the Azure Purview governance portal to monitor data usage, ensure compliance, and update scans and classifications as data sources or governance needs evolve.

Use Case: Data Governance in a Financial Institution

A global financial institution leverages Microsoft Purview to enhance its data governance and compliance efforts. By registering diverse data sources, including on-premises databases, cloud storage, and SaaS applications, the organization gains a unified view of its data landscape.

Key Actions:

1. Data Discovery: Automated scans across various data sources identify and catalog sensitive financial data, such as customer information and transaction records.
2. Data Classification: Purview classifies this data according to regulatory requirements, tagging it with sensitivity labels to ensure compliance with GDPR and other regulations.
3. Data Lineage Visualization: The Data Map provides insights into data flow and lineage, allowing data officers to trace the origin and movement of critical data assets.
4. Policy Enforcement: Data policies are established and monitored, ensuring that sensitive data is adequately protected, and access is restricted based on user roles.

Outcome: By implementing Microsoft Purview, the institution improves data transparency, reduces compliance risks, and enhances data-driven decision-making, ultimately leading to greater trust and efficiency in its operations.

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